Daddy, Don't Hurt Me
by BakaBuns
Summary: Serena, abused as a child trusts no man. Can she ever let anyone in? Warning: Graphic content.
1. Prologue

**Daddy, Don't Hurt Me**

**Warning: For Mature audiences only. Not because of Lemony goodness, but because of issues of abuse and language. Not for the faint of heart.**

**Author's Note:** Hopefully, my formatting is getting better. This is my new fiction. Don't worry, **Consequences** will still get updated regularly. This piece though, just had to be written. It's close to my heart, and will be violent at times. But, since it is listed under romance, expect the later chapters to delve into that area a bit more. Bare with the pain.

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**Prologue**

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1995**

_ "Serena, God Dammit! You come out here!" His screeching voice could be heard from the living room. _

_Serena Connor hid in her closet. He was angry again. _

_Probably drunk too._

_ "You stupid child! Your fucking toys about near killed me again!" The ten year old quivered in fear. He was really angry. It had been a few months since he screamed that loud. Once he found her, she knew she'd be in trouble._

_ Hide. She kept telling herself. Hide, and pray that he doesn't find you._

_ "Serena, I swear to God if you don't come out this instant, you are going to be sorry when I find you."_

_ Her heart thumped wildly against her chest. It was just a toy. What was the big deal? Didn't he watch where he was going. The fear in her heart welled up. He would find her._

_ Pray that he doesn't find you._

_ He always did though. The closet was dark. Toys of every shape and size filled it to the brim. Her mother doted on her, giving her barbies and blocks, but her favorite was stuffed bears. Right now the big white one she received a month ago when her father, Ken, had lashed out on her, covered her small frame._

_ Pray that he doesn't find you._

_ Her head spun when the closet door flung open._

_ "Serena. I know you are in here. This is your favorite hiding place, you little devil of a child."_

_ Don't move. If you don't move, he won't find you._

_ Close your eyes._

_ I can't see him. He can't see me._

_ I can't see him. He can't see me._

_ I can't see - cold flooded her body as the embrace of the big bear left her body._

_ Her father's wicked grin curved upwards as he looked upon her liquid blue orbs filled with terror. He found her._

_ "There you are, you little bitch." His big, calloused hand came down and tugged at her long golden tresses. A yelp of pain barely reached her throat as she tried to repress it._

_ Two months ago her mother had taken her to a salon to cut the beautiful locks off. Now, as he drug her out of the closet by them, they didn't seem so precious. _

_ She remembered screaming at the hairdresser until her mother had pulled her by the arm out of the parlor, red with embarrassment. In the parking lot, she scolded her. That was no way to behave at the age of ten._

_ If only she would have listened then._

_ His hand came flying down against her cheek. Pain seared through her, making her head throb._

_ What did she do to deserve this?_

_ Throwing her down against the wall, she shielded her head, letting her body crash into the thick wood panel of her room. Before she could gain composure from the last two blows, he pulled her again by her hair and shoved a small toy in her face._

_ A tiny baby for her Barbie dolls. The newest edition to her ever-growing toy collection._

_ "You see this?" He spat in her face. Eyes bulged in rage, he shoved the doll into her chubby nose._

_ "Yes..." She cried out. Maybe this time if she acted guilty he wouldn't hurt her anymore._

_ "I tripped over this piece of shit, because you didn't clean up after yourself. You are just about as worthless as your mother, you little bitch. That's okay though, I'll teach you and her both a lesson." With finality, he grabbed her by the forearm and yanked her into the living room of their tiny trailer._

_ He slammed her down into the middle of the floor. Unbuckling his belt, he fumbled to get it off, overjoyed, it seemed, to use it on his defenseless daughter._

_ "Take off your shirt," he commanded._

_ Wide-eyed, she looked up and pleaded with him, "Daddy...Please, don't hurt me."_

_ Seeming to ignore his daughter's cries he again screamed, "Take off your damn shirt, or I will for you!"_

_ Knowing that anymore pleas would be futile, she pulled off her shirt, and huddle on the floor, her back exposed to him._

_ His belt came down on her with a crack. She screamed and jumped at each hit of the belt._

_ Crack._

_ Crack._

_ Crack._

_ His manic eyes continued staring at the welts he was making on his daughter's back. After he had hit her a good fifteen times he stopped._

_ Serena lay on the floor, sobs heaving as she tried to breathe through them._

_ "Maybe you will finally get the message, you little bitch, to keep your Goddamn toys off the floor." He kicked her for good measure and turned to the corner of the room._

_ A thin, frail looking woman sat in the corner. Her wiry blonde hair seemed unkempt and her clothes hung from her body. Appearances didn't matter to this worn-down woman with bags under her eyes. Only the can in her left hand seemed to matter. She swung back another drink of the beer and her blue eyes collided with her husband's menacing ones._

_ "I hope that was as good for you as it was for me."_

_ He walked out into the kitchen to grab another beer as Serena limped back into her room to find solace with her bears._

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_**End Prologue**

Take a deep breath and pat yourself on the back. You made it through those 880 gruesome words.

Kudos.

I hope to update this later this week, if not next week.

Until then, Review and tell me what you think.

Be honest.

Although, some may have not heeded my warnings, this piece is not going to be fluff, perse, normal fluff. I am already delving into deep water here, and hopefully, I will do the characters justice along the way. And no, I don't take abuse lightly.


	2. Chapter 1: New Beginnings

**Daddy, Don't Hurt Me**

**Rated Mature for Violence, and references to abuse.**

**Author's Note: **Thanks so far to those who have reviewed. m1ssp1ggy, I too hope for happy endings for all abused. Sadly, that is not the case for many. My friend is just beginning a ministry and moving to LA to work with victims of Human Trafficking. It saddens me that stuff happens, but let's hope that the story I weave ends happily for Serena. I write a lot of angsty stuff that turns out badly, and I don't know where this one is going. I may or may not allow her to have her happy ending. Let's hope, but I am learning to let the characters speak for themselves, if that makes sense. So, palecrescent13 let's hope I surprise you. to sasumiofjp and loveinthebattlefield, thanks for your comments. I hope to continue to show the sides of Serena and the repercussions abuse has on a person.

Keep reviewing guys! I may not always call people out like I did today, but since there were only four reviews, I felt I could totally do that. Anyways, enough with my rambling. Here's Chapter one!

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Chapter One: New Beginnings**

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Present Day**

Waking up was always the hardest for Serena. The fluffy down comforter in deep pink and lacy matching pillows that scattered the queen sized bed seemed to have their grasp on her. Maybe it wasn't even that at all.

Maybe, it was because after all these years, she could finally get some rest.

The alarm clock's screech went on and on. She had to place it across the room in order for her to even have the motivation to not hit snooze.

Lately, though, it seemed easy to either ignore it, or walk over, hit snooze and dazedly climb back into the squishy bed.

Today was one of those days she just let it ring. She wasn't letting go of this dream.

It was too good.

He was there, her knight in shining armour. The castle was on fire and she, flailing her arms, her pointy princess hat bobbing in the wind, seemed to be trapped in the highest tower. With his devilishly handsome good looks, and charming smile, he managed to climb the tower and rescue her. When he pulled her into his arms, he began to purr softly as his lips came down on hers.

Purr? That didn't seem right. Serena's fantasy world never had animal sounds. Maybe guttural, animalistic moaning, but purring?

Opening a heavy eyelid, Serena was greeted by her lovely black cat, Luna. Smiling at the face now rubbing itself on her chin, she pet her in the only peculiar white spot she had - her forehead's crescent moon shaped.

"Oh Luna." Serena began to shove the blankets off of her body, but the cat didn't budge. "Up, up!" With a little effort the cat finally hopped off her and watched as Serena slammed her hand on the off button of her annoying alarm.

Stretching, she padded to her bathroom to get ready for her first day of her new job. She couldn't wait. Her best friend, Amy Mathews, had a pull in the company and was able to get a position as an assistant editor for Serena. It required a move, but Serena didn't care.

New place, meant new beginning.

A new beginning was just what Serena needed.

The shower was warm on her skin as she scrubbed away the night's grime and sweat. Too bad water couldn't wipe away the scars marring her body.

Most of her body seemed unscathed. Anyone looking at her front side would never know what the twenty-five year old dealt with. As she took her loofa to her backside, the sponge scrubbed at the ridges left from the years of continuous beatings.

Wearing a swimsuit was never an option for Serena. Her father made sure of that. She shuddered inwardly, thinking about the bastard that caused her trauma for most of her life.

New beginnings.

New beginnings.

As she dried herself off with her fluffy towel, she continued to chant. At least her new job with Amy would be wonderful. Above anything else in the world, books and fantasy world excited her.

It made sense to her. Books were her escape. Growing up, the televisions in the house always blared of trash her father watched. His fascination was with grimy women, cheating and war. Vietnam changed him, her mother had said in defense once.

Serena laughed inwardly at that recollection. Her mother was always a coward.

Irene Connor had married an older man at the ripe age of twenty. It took them five years to have their only child, Ken Connor's personal punching bag.

War apparently changed him, but Serena never understood what excuse her mother had for the pathetic mess she was. The only guess Serena had was that her mother was desperate for a man, and the first one that knocked down her door, she clung to for dear life.

Despite it all, she knew her parents loved each other. In some sick and twisted love, but love nonetheless. Too bad Serena had to come along and ruin that.

When Serena turned eighteen, she grabbed her diploma and hit the ground running. College was her refuge and she finagled her way on campus during holidays and summers. Never looking back, seven years later, Serena finished her Master's Degree and _finally _today she would be joining the ranks of the working class.

Her body buzzed in excitement. Not to mention, Amy was able to share it with her.

Amy Mathews, one of her two best friends. They met their freshman year in their composition class. Sitting next to each other, they would chuckle at the idiotic questions their other classmates would ask. Both noticed each other immediately and began swapping English assignments for reviewing. It was great to have a friend going through the same classes and enduring the snooze some professors could be.

With Amy, brought Amy's longtime friend Raye Kingsley. Raye was a fireball, and a genius to boot. The passion the woman brought into Serena's life influenced her personality to a great deal. Unlike the passive attitude Serena had growing up, Raye showed her how to stand up for herself.

Now, instead of grimacing and twitching in the presence of males, most of the time Serena's sharp tongue she used to keep to herself, comes out with the snap of a finger. It made the unwanted advances men tried to throw at her constantly, ten times easier to shoot down.

These two women meant everything to her. They were her family, and they felt the same. Amy only had a mother who supported her decision to stay closer to her friends, and Raye an elder grandfather who took sole custody of her as a child.

When Amy received news that Moonie Press wanted her as an Assistant Editor, she sat down with her friends to discuss it. To think, she almost threw away a once in a lifetime chance of joining the firm just because of her two friends.

Raye, nor Serena would allow her to. They both were resolved that in a few months to a year, the trio would be together again. Sisters until the end of the world.

With a biology degree, it was easy for Raye to find a job in Philadelphia. She chose to work in the at risk high schools, feeling a calling for the students no one else gave a chance.

For Serena, even though her background was similar to a lot of the students Raye would teach, she couldn't bring herself to work with the students. It was selfish, she knew, but all Serena wanted was to leave the past behind her.

Both her friends moving out there, Serena was desperate to find anything. She planned on moving out with them, and taking anything she could for the time being.

But Amy, as always, was watching out for her. Somehow Amy had worked her magic and now Serena was able to land a job with Moonie Press.

Not only a job, but a job working right alongside Amy in developing a new line of fiction for the book company. She could not wait.

Now, all she had to do was make sure she wasn't late.

When dry, she put on her cute, but conservative undergarments and went to her closet to choose her outfit. First day impressions for some reason, unbeknownst to Serena, were important. Today, she had to get her appearance right.

Choosing brown wide-leg trousers, a v-neck tee over a lacy white cami and overtop for a little bit of pop a drape-front orange vest. Her brown flats blended well with the trousers she choose. Conservative and fun, two words that often didn't seem to go together fit her outfit perfectly.

Throwing her long blonde hair up in a loose bun, she was ready to go. Amy was waiting for her on the couch of their three bedroom apartment. Head stuck in a book, she looked up at Serena's form entering the room. She smiled, her white teeth contrasting with her short black hair, and put down her book.

She chuckled as she looked at her delicate watch adorning her wrist. "You are way cute, but had you taken five more minutes, we could have been late." She shook her head in her friends direction. "Some things never change."

"Thanks Ames." Serena pointed up to the still wet hair tied in her messy bun. "This is not a work of art like my hair normally is. You know how ridiculous my hair can be."

Rolling her eyes and getting up from the couch, she replied, "Yes, because having long, gorgeous wavy hair is such a _pain. _I am so _glad _I wasn't blessed with the best hair on earth."

Amy seemed unaware of how beautiful, she herself was. In a slouchy knee-length blue dress her natural navy tones in her hair stuck out even more. The white three-quarter length cardigan she wore over the ensemble was buttoned up only halfway, allowing the ends to flap out on each side for a pop of blue on her chest. Adorning her feet were silver gladiator sandals that accented the outfit tastefully.

But according to Amy, Serena was the only one who didn't know she was beautiful. Not that Amy had been through the experiences Serena had, but Amy never was popular with the boys. It seemed her intelligence always intimidated them.

If only Serena could have been that lucky.

In high school when Serena had come into her looks, the boys tripped over themselves to get a glimpse at the blonde.

Shy, innocent and completely unavailable, the boys at school placed bets on who would win Serena's devotion first. Too bad she never bet that none of them would. Once they found out the innocent rumors were true, they shied away themselves.

Not that Serena ever gave them the time of day. None of the immature boys in high school were worth her time. She simply didn't trust men.

In college, the chase continued, but thanks to Raye, she used her sharp tongue to knock them down. Now, at twenty-five, the inexperience seemed to scare men off.

Not that Serena minded.

Okay, she minded, but she just hoped that someday a good man would be able to be gentle with her and take the time to gain her trust.

So far, no male was willing to try.

All she could do was wait for that right one to come along and sweep her off her feet.

Until then, she had her job. And her faceless prince that came to her every night in her dreams.

Knocking her out of her thoughts was Amy's voice. "Ready to go?"

With her new Go Green, green Starbuck's coffee mug, she nodded and they headed out the door.

New beginnings were only blocks away.

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**End Chapter One**

Okay, so this one, like Consequences, may develop slowly. I really want to go in depth with character on this one especially.

Again, reviews would be wonderful!

and, I have decided on not having a Beta for this one, so bare with it. I don't plan on having the chapters switch point of views so much in this piece.

yet...but, who knows?


	3. Chapter 2: Playboy

**Daddy, Don't Hurt Me**

**Rating Mature by this chapter, you should know why.**

**Author's Note: **So, I started summer courses this week. Blech. Nothing like taking history online over the summer. Or how about Master Lifetime Learning Skills? I think some of my universities requirements for graduating are absolutely ridiculous. Yes, system I want to pay 600 dollars for a class that tells me how to take proper notes. By the time I am 22, don't you think I have it down on how to take notes? Yes, random rant.

Don't worry I will have another chapter of Consequences soon. We want Darien to Grovel, okay so I do. Still working out kinks on how Chapter Eight is going to go down. I put that story in a word document all together the other day, and I couldn't believe it! 84 pages. Wow. I am proud of myself. Okay, but that is not what this is about.

I am really liking where this story is going so far. I was dreaming plots the other night. This must be what writing does to you. Consequences and Daddy, Don't Hurt me were rolling together. It was fantastic!

And here's my thanks. Thanks to LBricker88, m1ssp1ggy, sabina21, Light'by'day, sasumiofjp, and Lady Shakona for reviewing! I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. It's all Darien. I really love him no matter how he's written. :)

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**Chapter Two: Playboy**

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Darien Hughes couldn't take his eyes off the luscious blonde sitting at the other end of the long conference table. Seated at the head, he had a full view of everyone, well the few people that were there as early as he was and she happened to be one of them.

Today she had decided to tease him with letting her straight cornflower yellow hair cascade down her back. Strands escaped the rest, falling over her pert, grey, halter covered breasts. Appreciative of the roundness, he returned to his favorite part of the woman diligently reading the manuscript in front of her. Her luscious, blonde hair.

Even he had to admit it, he had a thing for blondes, and her hair was long enough to get lost in for hours.

"Darien…" Not looking up from the papers, her voice came out in annoyance.

He had her attention now. He wasn't quiet about his roaming eyes. "Yes, Mina."

She huffed and rolled her eyes, "I know I'm attractive and all, but you are really starting to get on my nerves with your staring. It's not happening."

Shifting in his chair, he leaned over the table and laced his fingers together. "Oh, but my friend, it already has."

Setting down the papers, her sharp blue eyes shot him an infuriated glance. "Once. And that was far too many times playboy."

A crude smile curved on his handsome, devilish lips barely meeting his playful eyes. "You keep telling yourself that Mina, but I know you thoroughly enjoyed that night. But, I'll let you get back to work. More people should be arriving for our meeting."

"I should thank you, but that would be wasting my breath." She fanned her hand in a shooing gesture and began to read again.

Mina Stewart was certainly a vixen. An easy lay in his mind. She was just upset that he couldn't give her more than a good night. Nonetheless, she was easy to look at, and it didn't help that she wore clothing that usually plunged down her neckline and barely covered her favorite part of her body. As he was about to begin teasing her again, more of their coworkers arrived.

Lita Kelley walked in and sat down in the chair next to Mina. They began to chat, obviously happy about their conversation. Now Lita was another gorgeous woman Darien enjoyed looking at. She had the body of an athlete, at 5'8'' she loomed over her short coworker, who stood only at a measley 5'1''. Instead of his preferred blonde, she had wavy copper-tinted brown locks that normally were slung up in a loose pony that fell down to the middle of her back. In her feminine dark brown female suit, she gave an air of confidence.

With her runner's body, she had been a wonderful conquest for Darien. Too bad she never fell for his bait, like Mina. Mina, at the moment had been the only woman working on their new project that fell for his charm. And boy did he have charm.

Standing at a solid 6'2'', Darien gave off that masculine protector aura. He had broad shoulders and a muscular build. He couldn't lie, he loved to lift after a long day editing. Always, he kept his face clean of any hair and women fawned over how soft his face was for a man. Definition of pretty boy was Darien Hughes.

Besides his never-ending body and libido, women swooned over his jet-black hair that was just long enough that it fell sexily into his eyes. But his real asset was all in his eyes. Their crystal-like blue that were as clear as day mesmerized his victims.

Not that they were victims. They thoroughly enjoyed his playboy antics. And playboy was who Darien was. He made women his conquests and they flocked willingly to his handsome face and rock hard body. Too bad no woman ever kept his attention longer than getting them to the bed.

Once they hit the sack with him, he tossed them aside like they were garbage. He rarely repeated his encounters with women. It gave them the wrong impression.

The last thing he ever wanted to give them was the wrong impression. He wasn't the relationship type. Not that he had anything against relationships. He just found most women a bore, sans their sexual experience.

Now, because of his playboy antics, he had to head up the new division at Moonie Press and he was not thrilled. Besides him, there were only two other men working on the line, and unlike him, they volunteered.

Speaking of volunteers, Darien looked up to see his friend Andrew Michaels walk in and smile his perfect row of teeth to the ladies at the end of the table. After asking them how their morning was going, he sauntered over to his seat beside Darien. At least the men stuck together.

"Good morning Dare." Andrew smiled. Playboy number two.

Okay, so not so much. Andrew had been around the block, but he tried to at least somewhat maintain good terms with women. He'd even had dates - with the same woman - more than once. If Darien was night, Andrew was day.

With his sandy blonde hair and boyish features, Andrew gave a sense of the boy-next-door look. The two friends complimented one another. Darien was ruthless, cocky, arrogant and opinionated. Andrew, however, was easy-going. A nice boy.

Well, you know what they say about nice boys. They finish last. At least between Darien and Andrew. Of course when you had walking sex on a stick, like Darien, his sex appeal radiating off him like a drug, what man stood a chance?

"Hey." Darien finally replied to his friend, after leaving his reverie of how amazing he was. Not that Darien was all bad. He just, well he thought highly of himself.

His cockiness was probably another reason women didn't stick around. Even if he would open up to one, which he wouldn't, they wouldn't stick around long. No one seemed to match his humor.

"So, this is the first day of this new project, eh?" Andrew nudged him in the arm. He knew how annoyed Darien was at having to work on the new line Moonie Press wanted out. It was their new money crop.

Times like these made Darien wish he hated books.

Times like these made Darien wish he wasn't good at his job.

Times like these made him stop mid-thought as a new, gorgeous blonde walked in with that sweet bluenette Amy.

The woman who walked in, nervous-looking, smiled and giggled at a comment made by Amy and looked around the room at the others sitting around the table. Biting her lip, and playing with her fingers, she grabbed the chair next to Amy and sat down. She pushed a fallen strand of hair back behind her ear and smiled at the women across from her.

It was times like these he wished that Amy liked to sit closer to him, and not the ex-fanclub of his, Lita and Mina.

None of that mattered though, he would introduce himself to the new blonde girl. Something about her continued to fascinate him as she sweetly, and quietly talked to the people around her. The way her face lit up with that dazzling smile of hers.

Darien's new conquest just arrived.

"Her name is Serena." Andrew said to his friend, knowingly. Darien unlocked his gaze from the woman and looked at his friend in unspoken question. Andrew sighed with knowing. Darien wouldn't give up until he told him all he knew.

"Her best friend from college is Amy. She just received her Master's and wanted to move closer to Amy. She coaxed Greg into hiring her." Darien looked at him as if he wanted him to elaborate more. Andrew put up his hands in defeat. "Dude, that's all I know."

Darien nodded, "Well, I suppose I will have to find out." He looked back at the blonde. "She sure is a fine specimen."

Shaking his head in amusement at Darien's antics, Andrew pulled out his notepad and pen, getting ready to take whatever notes he needed to. "You are something else, man. This one looks too sweet to even give you the time of the day."

"We'll see, Andrew." He got his notes and did a head count. He stood and adjusted the black tie that was immaculately placed over his deep powder blue button-up dress shirt.

"Hello everyone. Welcome to those who I don't know yet." His eyes connected with her bright blue orbs. If ever there was a woman with as deep and clear blue eyes, he had never seen one. Regaining his composure he continued with his speech. "As most of you know, this is a new line that Moonie Press has decided to make it their number one marketing scheme this year. I am going to be the head honcho here for this..." He paused, trying to control his grimace. "For this line of Romance novels..." The last two words came off his tongue as if he were trying to spit the disgusting words out.

"But these novels aren't just any run of the mill novels, because that would be impossible in the ever so inventive world of the hero and heroine." He smiled inwardly at his quip. How was he ever going to do this project and take it seriously? "Nope, Moonie Press did a lot of research of what our female audience wants. It seems no one else on the market right now offers a line of romantic comedies. Apparently the topic of romance itself isn't funny enough."

With everyone jotting down notes, he pulled up a slide of the main topics the company wanted.

"As you can see, the company wants witty, fun, and sassy to be at the core of these new heroines. Moonie Press wants not just a woman, but a fresh one. She has to be one who stands on her own two feet, looking, but not looking for love. Throw out that trash about damsels. No longer do they exist in this line.

"These women aren't in realization that they need rescuing. The man that comes in may not be the most romantic guy in the world. Our reader wants real. Figaro, or whatever his name was, is out. Our men need to compliment the lady in ways she never saw coming.

"That means as we go through this garble of manuscripts authors have sent us, we have to look for these qualities." He put his hands down on the table as he looked out over the faces of his coworkers. "As most of you in here are women, it shouldn't be a problem for you enjoying these novels we will be editing, accepting or rejecting."

"Now, Moonie Press has been working on trying to develop this line for awhile, and let me tell you, we have plenty of junk to look through to find those gems. So you will see in the back of the room the stacks." Behind the table he pointed to the huge stacks of paper that looked overflowing. "We will be working to find the best twenty novels for the launch, and go from there. Now ladies, us men may have a lot to learn from you, and vice versa. If I have to read these, make sure they are the best romance novels you have ever read, because I personally don't want to be reading garbage for this line."

They all finished their notes and one by one went to the stack, fulfilling dreams of aspiring writers, or dashing them in an instant. Hours of flipping pages seemed to go by, every so often they would share a piece of information they found ridiculous or humorous. At around noon, Darien excused them all for a lunch break. Wanting to introduce himself to the new blonde, he followed her into the lounge where he watched as she meticulously poured herself a cup of coffee.

With quick strides he walked up behind her and cleared his throat in announcement. Jumping in fear, her hands lost their grip on the mug and the piping hot coffee flew from its container straight onto Darien's abdomen.

"God Damn! That's hot!" He screamed out in pain. Serena quivered and braced herself in between him and the white counter. Her eyes grew wide and as she shook, looking at his angry face, she quickly bowed her head in shame.

The next words out of her mouth stunned him. "Please, don't hurt me." She stood pained, waiting as if he would attack her.

He grabbed a towel from the counter, and began to try and wipe the brown mess off his shirt. "Hurt you? Why would I do that. It's just coffee."

It took her a moment to calm down and reassess the situation. Once she breathed normal again, he watched as she looked at the bitter smelling stain she just caused. Hastily, she grabbed another paper towel and tried cleaning up the mess.

"I'm so sorry. I'm just really nervous in new places." She gave up at her feeble attempt to dry off his shirt. "I think I ruined your shirt."

He looked down at the mess. "No biggie. I'll just take it to the cleaners. I came over to introduce myself, seeing as how you are working on the project I am heading. The name is Darien."

He held out his hand in introduction. Staring at his hand, a small ounce of fear still lingering in her eyes, she hesitated before grabbing his hand in a light handshake. He couldn't help notice how frail her tiny hand was in his big one. As fast as she could, she shot her hand behind her and replied to him. "Serena Connor. I'm new here. Amy got me the job. She's my roommate." She nervously stuttered. "Not that you need to know my whole life story. I am going to just shut up and go now. Nice to meet you, Darien."

Standing in a stupor, Darien gazed at the peculiar girl now walking out of the lounge, her empty coffee mug sitting on the wet counter. If he didn't know any better, he would have to say that he scared her off. But that notion was impossible, because Darien didn't scare women off.

He was a charmer.

No, there was something about that girl though, and he was determined to find out.

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**End Chapter Two**

Oh man, is he in over his head or what?

Heh Heh is all I want to say to him and his little playboy manners.

So, am I going to have to beg for reviews? I'm above it...

Maybe.

Maybe I might beg...

Please?


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